MARINE CORPS AIR STATION IWAKUNI, Japan -- The Sho Stoppaz edged Fil-Am 56-48 during the championship game of the Intramural Basketball season at the IronWorks Gym basketball courts here June 21.
The teams faced off against each other in two games that night.
During the first game, Fil-Am lacked both communication and good defense making it easy for the Sho Stoppaz to dominate.
Frustration set in for Fil-Am, but when the second game came around both teams came out with intensity.
“We played extra hard to get out of the losers bracket, and during the second game those guys wanted to show us that they could stay in and fight with us,” said Darius Harpe, the Sho Stoppaz coach.
Within the first few minutes of the game, most observers in the stands would have thought that it was going to be a rerun of the prior game as the Sho Stoppaz gained quickly scoring 17 points compared to Fil-Am’s five.
By the second half of the first period, Fil-Am stepped up their defense and started driving more shots to the hoop leaving the Sho Stoppaz with only a 7-point lead by the end of the first period.
Both teams went into the second period with the same momentum as the first. The Sho Stoppaz knew that Fil-Am wasn’t going down without a fight this time.
During a lapse in the Sho Stoppaz defense, Drevonn Fluellen of Fil-Am drove two shots to the hoop putting them in the lead for the first time all night with a score of 42-41.
After a timeout, the Sho Stoppaz came back focused and ready to win, tying up the game 44-44 with only five minutes remaining.
“We got down a little bit when we let them take that brief lead but then we stepped up the game,” said Harpe.
Fil-Am consistently fouled the Sho Stoppaz point guard, Rabosky Tanner, making it easy to rack up points.
After the last free-throw, the Sho Stoppaz ran out the clock, finishing the game 56-48.
Although many attributed the win to Tanner’s hard work, he didn’t take all the credit.
“It took a team effort,” said Tanner. “We all stuck it out till the end and got it done as a team.”
“I’m proud of my guys for fighting through that last game,” said Harpe. “We got a little tired but we found a way to pull it out, and that’s what champions do.”